A prominent German sociologist, political economist and an intellectual thinker of the XIX century, Max Weber shall be considered as one of the most influential thinkers over the course of the human history. In the world of economic sociology and the sociology of religion, he is known as the author of “The Protestant Ethic and the Spirit of Capitalism”. His books remain sold out even these days, as well as the theories, proved to be working in practice these days, too.

When one refers to the sociology of religion and the impact of Weber’s theory on society, a primary source shall be his book mentioned above. Max Weber claimed that society, where Protestantism is a dominant religion, are more likely to be good in entrepreneurship. Some of the social norms that were forbidden by a Catholic church beforehand, in the Protestantism would lead to the most open approach in leading household and everyday life. That would also allow to demonstrate the skills that were earlier not allowed to be exposed. So, citizens in the states where Protestantism was the leading religion, were more likely to adopt capitalism. In other words, according to Max Weber, capitalism and Protestantism were closely bound.

In the scientific community, both the book and the theory of Max Weber were publicly recognized as influential. In 1998, the book was even listed as the fourth most influential book in the sociology of the 20th century.

Referring to the theory being in practice, the above-mentioned points by Weber could be seen in action while looking at the example of the political culture of Germany. The state was one of the earliest to live through the movement of Reformation. In Germany, Martin Luther was famous for spreading his ideas. Besides, it was the area inhabited by Calvinists, too. So, historically Germany became one of the first Protestant states in Western Europe. What’s more, it has become one of the first capitalist states as well. When former Catholics did not have to pay mandatory taxes for church services, the money could be used for social needs. The changes could also be read in the architecture.

In Protestant culture, contact between people to people became much closer, and religious communities were uniting. For instance, some of the former Calvinist German cities have big windows without curtains so that people walking on the street could see what’s going on in the household. In other words, open communities were more likely to unite for doing a similar or identical activity, which could also be some capitalist actions.
The similar story regarding sociology of religion and its ties to capitalism could be told about Dutch as well. Often, architecture reveals many stories about social ties. And following the big windows, simple forms, the absence of luxury in churches one can conclude that society was secularizing. The primary focus turned into manufacture. With the industrial revolution, the role of the Catholic church diminished even more, and the Protestant way of living and interpreting the world was more acceptable to the needs of society. Dutch as the first nation where the industrial revolution took place, experienced the theory of Max Weber in action, too.

Another prominent example serves Nordic countries, such as Denmark, Norway and Sweden. Until these days, Protestantism plays a role of a dominant religion. Northern Europe, in general, did not experience as much Catholic influence as other Western European countries. Moreover, the political system of this days also remains capitalism. I believe that these countries prove at utmost that the theory of Max Weber work as the index rates of democracy, stability and happiness put them in the first place among other European countries. So, religion and the way of production can combine successfully.

Another leading theory of Max Weber that shall be discussed is the theory of stratification. At that time, the thinker’s ideas were considered opposite to the ones proposed by Karl Marx. According to Max Weber, class, power and status could determine social stratification. In his views, class was a person’s economic position in the society; status could be determined as the prestige or honor that could be influenced by class in certain cases; power was one’s ability to get one’s way despite the resistance of others. In his writings, Max Weber confirmed the theory by looking at the stratification of German society. The case of German society proved that society was based on something broader than ownership of capital.

What’s even more, the Weberian theory of stratification has its roots for an explanation of early democracies. The three categories he put in the center reflected the power of three independent sources. Only then, a social status of a person could be determined. United States evidences the theory in practice. For instance, a congressman in the US government is someone to occupy high hierarchical position due to status and power but with a possible economic income.

To some up, the theories of Max Weber remain influential not only in the academic world these days. Moreover, until now his ideas significantly influence the way of thinking and social relations in many of the Western European societies as well as in the US.